3-5 DLI Schedule

Students in 3rd - 5th Grade follow the 50/50 model.  Students spend half day in English and half day in Spanish.  They are receiving both languages in the same day.  Students are learning English and Spanish through the contents listed below:

• English:
  • Math, English Literacy
  • Art
  • Music
  • PE
  • Media (Library/Tech)
• Spanish:
  • Reading, Writing, Science, Social Studies
  • Spanish Literacy
  • Spanish Enrichment

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Thompson School District offers Dual Language Immersion 50/50 programs in Spanish in four schools: Truscott Elementary, Cottonwood Plains Elementary, Bill Reed Middle School, and Lucille Erwin Middle School (and continuing to High Schools in the coming years).  Dual Language Immersion is an academic program that enhances the development of content in two languages, English and Spanish, as well as literacy in both languages so that students will graduate ready for college, career and life in a globally competitive economy.

What to expect in a 50/50 dual language immersion program:

• English-speaking teacher uses half of the instruction day to teach English language arts and portions of social studies and science, as well as, other subjects of the curriculum.
• Spanish-speaking teacher uses the other half of the day to teach Spanish literacy and math at the grade-appropriate level of the Colorado State Standards.

Program Goals:

• Maximize students' Spanish language proficiency and English language proficiency.
• Provide a rich academic environment in both languages.
• Develop students' abilities to work and live successfully in multiple cultural settings.
• Offer a rich, culturally diverse experience.

Proven benefits of language immersion:

• Students achieve high levels of proficiency in the immersion language.
• Students perform as well as or better than non-immersion students on standardized tests of English and math administered in English.
• Students typically develop greater cognitive flexibility, demonstrating increased attention control, better memory and stronger problem-solving skills, as well as, an enhanced understanding of their own language.
• Students are more aware of and show more positive attitudes towards other cultures; a global skill needed for the 21st century.

Why Spanish?

• Spanish opens the door to many domestic and international career opportunities.
• Knowledge of the Spanish language is an asset in the fields of science, math, business, law, medicine, arts, the military and the humanities.  Scores of major international businesses and organizations, as well as, American companies, regularly recruit candidates who speak Spanish.

Who can participate?

• The Thompson School District Dual Language Immersion Programs seek to enroll students of varying backgrounds and all abilities.  Applications are open to all students entering kindergarten and first grade.  However, it may not be a wise choice for children experiencing significant communication delays in their primary language.